A sorter conveyor system according to the invention includes at least one endless conveyor loop including a rail. One or more conveyor segments are mounted on the rail. Each segment is a series of cart units each having wheel structures mounted for rolling movement along the rail, a carrier for carrying one or more items thereon, a selectively actuable mechanism for actuating the carrier laterally in at least one direction to unload an item from the carrier to an unloading station adjacent the conveyor loop, and a coupling mechanism for joining each cart unit in each series in a head to tail relationship. One or more drive elements are connected to one or more of the cart units and configured to permit the conveyor segment to be driven by a linear drive unit. A drive system is provided which includes a plurality of linear drive units, preferably linear induction motors (LIM's) disposed at spaced positions along the conveyor loop for driving each of the drive elements of the cart units in each segment, such that each conveyor segment can each be driven independently of each other conveyor segment by selective actuation of the linear drive units.
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1. A sorter conveyor system, comprising
a conveyor loop including a rail; at least one conveyor segment, which segment comprises a series of cart units each having wheel structures mounted for rolling movement along the rail, wherein a first and last cart in each segment are adjacent to only one other cart in that segment, each cart having a carrier for carrying one or more items thereon, a selectively actuable mechanism for actuating the carrier in at least one direction to unload an item from the carrier to an unloading station adjacent the conveyor loop, and a coupling mechanism for joining each cart unit in each series in a head to tail relationship, and wherein one or more drive elements are connected to one or more of the cart units and configured to permit the conveyor segment to be driven by a linear drive; and a drive system for driving each of the drive elements of the cart units in each segment.
12. A method for sorting and conveying using a sorter conveyor system, which system includes a conveyor loop including a rail, at least one conveyor segment, which segment comprises a series of cart units each having wheel structures mounted for rolling movement along the rail, wherein a first and last cart in each segment are adjacent to only one other cart in that segment, each cart having a carrier for carrying one or more items thereon, a selectively actuable mechanism actuating the carrier in at least one direction to unload an item from the carrier to an unloading station adjacent the conveyor loop, and a coupling mechanism for joining each cart unit in each series in a head to tail relationship, and wherein one or more drive elements are connected to one or more of the cart units and configured to permit the conveyor segment to be driven by a linear drive, and a drive system including a plurality of linear drive units disposed at spaced positions along the conveyor loop for driving each of the drive elements of the cart units in each segment, which method comprises the steps of:
moving the conveyor segment past a loading station; loading items onto the trays of one or more of the carts as the carts pass the loading station; actuating the linear drive system to move the segment of carts past a row of unloading stations; and unloading items from the cart carriers to the unloading stations in accordance with a sorting scheme.
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This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 09/255,190, filed Feb. 22, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,246,023.
The invention relates to sorting using a conveyor, particularly to an apparatus and method for sorting items using multiple carts traveling around a closed loop.
The postal system and high volume package shipping industry use tilt tray and cross-belt conveyor systems to sort bundles of letters and packages according to their respective destinations. Specialized sorters sort a bundle or package by destination zip code. During operation, an input stream of parcels is placed on a conveyor and sorted into multiple output streams. The conveyor sorts the packages by unloading them to either another appropriate conveyor or to an intermediate destination such as an unloading station. The unloading operation can be carried out with a tilt tray mechanism that tilts and ejects the package or bundle, or a cross-belt conveyor that unloads the item by means of a moving belt that conveys the item laterally.
Prior art tilt tray conveyor systems comprise a series of tilt tray carts linked together in a continuous loop. According to one known tilt tray conveyor system, the trays are secured to an endless drive chain, which pulls the trays around the loop. See Muller U.S. Pat. No. 3,662,874, issued May 16, 1972. According to another known tilt tray conveyor system known as the Mantissa Scorpion, linear induction motors (LIM's) are disposed at intervals around the loop for acting on a horizontally or vertically disposed plate (drive element) on each cart. The frame of each cart is T-shaped with a single axle, so that each cart depends on an adjoining cart for support.
Prior art cross belt sorters similarly comprise an endless loop of carts. Items to be conveyed are deposited on the cross-belt, which replaces a tray as the carrier. During unloading, an electric motor drives the conveyor so that the item is moved off the conveyor surface to one side or the other. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,209, issued Nov. 25, 1997 and also European Patent Application 927,689, published Jul. 7, 1999.
Referring now to
Inefficiencies caused by the method of locomotion also exist. According to another known conveyor design called the NovaSort, a product of Siemens ElectroCom, L.P., a train or segment of tilt tray carts connected end to end is drawn by a leading cart having an engine in the manner of a monorail. The lead cart draws power from a sliding electrical contact on the rail. This design suffers the customary drawbacks of systems that rely on sliding electrical contacts. In addition, the carts of each segment contain a solenoid that actuates the tilting mechanism on each cart, thus adding to the weight and complexity of the system.
Accordingly, a low-maintenance cart system is needed that reduces the potential for parcel damage created by cart transfers between loops.
A sorter conveyor system according to the invention includes at least one endless conveyor loop including a rail. One or more conveyor segments are mounted on the rail. Each segment is a series of cart units each having wheel structures mounted for rolling movement along the rail, a carrier such as a tray or cross-belt for carrying one or more items thereon, a selectively actuable mechanism for unloading the carrier, such as by tilting a carrier tray laterally in at least one direction to unload an item to an unloading station adjacent the conveyor loop, and a pivotable coupling mechanism for joining each cart unit in each series in a head to tail relationship. One or more drive elements are connected to one or more of the cart units and configured to permit the conveyor segment to be driven by a linear drive unit. A drive system is provided which includes a plurality of linear drive units, preferably linear induction motors (LIM's) disposed at spaced positions along the conveyor loop for driving each of the drive elements of the cart units in each segment, such that each conveyor segment can each be driven independently of each other conveyor segment by selective actuation of the linear induction drive units. Other types of linear drive units, such as mechanical systems which directly pass momentum to the cart as it passes or systems which rely on forces other than magnetism, could also be used.
The first and last carts in each segments are connected to only one adjoining cart, that is, are not connected or adjacent to each other in a manner effective to form a continuous cart loop as in the prior art. Where the system has two or more cart segments, for example, selective control of the LIM's can be used to move one segment independently of other segments on the same rail, but without need for an "engine", i.e., a front or rear cart that pulls or pushes the series of carts in a manner analogous to a railroad train engine.
A linear drive unit as referred to herein means any form of conveyor drive, including both mechanical and linear induction, that exerts a force on a cart as it passes by, propelling the cart linearly (in the direction of the rail the cart is traveling on). The force may be exerted intermittently, as when a fin or plate on the cart passes by the linear drive unit, or continuously, as where the fin or plate spans multiple carts in the segment. In the alternative, spaced drive elements may be deployed on some carts and not others, such as on every other cart in the segment, as long as there are enough drive elements to keep the entire segment moving as required by the system design.
The invention further provides a method for sorting and conveying using a sorter conveyor system as described above. The method comprises the steps of moving the conveyor segment past a loading station, loading items onto the carriers of one or more of the carts as the carts pass the loading station, actuating the linear drive system to move the segment of carts past a row of unloading stations, and unloading items from the cart carriers to the unloading stations in accordance with a sorting scheme. Since the cart segment does not occupy the entire rail, the linear drive units may if desired be actuated only as a drive element of a cart is passing by. Similarly, two or more cart segments may be independently controlled on the same rail, for example, as where one is passing the loading station as the other is passing the unloading stations, after which the two cart segments exchange roles. These and other aspects of the invention are discussed in the detailed description which follows.
The invention will hereafter be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals denote like elements, and:
Carts for use in the present invention may be substantially the same as systems presently in use, such as those shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,656, issued Dec. 21, 1999, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein, but with certain key differences as described hereafter. As shown in
Referring now to
Multiple segments 6A, 6B allow greater flexibility in system design. Segments 6A, 6B may be operated with only the number of carts 10 necessary for a desired process. This eliminates the expense of extra carts that are only required to complete the chain around the loop. The length of each segment 6A, 6B may be adjusted to match the volume of packages conveyed to a particular location. Independently operating segments 6A, 6B on a single track allows for a more efficient sorting process. A LID sorter of the invention having several segments 6A, 6B of varying lengths can accommodate many different sorting processes. According to a preferred aspect of the invention, the spacing of LIMs 14 may vary from conventional spacing based on a predetermined minimum size for segments 6. The preferred minimum distance between adjacent LIMs in the main loops 5A, 5B is the length of the shortest segment 6, such that a segment 6 is always over at least one LIM 14.
Tracks 28A, 28B may be provided with spaced LIM's in the same manner as loops 5A, 5B. If tracks 28 are short in comparison to the cart segments, it may not prove necessary to provide spaced linear induction motors along tracks 28, since the LIM's of the respective loops and the momentum of the cart segments may be sufficient to make the transfer. On the other hand, if tracks 28 are long and transfers between loops 5A, 5B are rare, it may be more economical to find an alternative means for moving the segments along, such changing the elevation of the loops to rely on gravity to make the transfer, moving the cart segments manually, or providing a suitable propulsion system other than a linear induction drive which acts on the segment during transfer.
A multi-loop system according to
Programming computer 40 allows a user to automatically control the path and movements of segments 6A-6D in accordance with a predetermined sorting scheme. Each segment 6A-6D can be directed to sort items around the loops 5A, 5B (or enter one of the loops 5C-5F, in the embodiment of FIG. 9). Computer 40 also controls loading items onto the cart 10 at loading stations 2A, 2B as well as actuation of the tray tilt mechanisms 16 at specific unloading stations 4A or 4B.
For control purposes, it may prove useful to provide readable panels, such as reflective panels or light-scanable bar codes on each cart as so that unloading only occurs when the correct identification is detected at the unloading station, as for example, by scanning a bar code affixed to the cart frame. However, it may also prove possible using computer 40 to operate the system without uniquely identifying each individual cart for unloading purposes. By tracking the location of the lead cart in a segment 6 and storing data identifying the number of carts 10 in that segment and the respective contents relative to a corresponding row of unloading stations 4A or 4B, sorting logic may then be used to match each specific cart 10 with its respective unloading station 4. It may prove necessary in some cases to provide sensors throughout the loops 5A-5C, not merely proximate the unloading stations 4A, 4B, so that computer 40 knows the exact or approximate position of each segment 6A-6E at all times so that switching errors and the like can be avoided.
In a typical operation using the embodiment of
As segment 6A is unloading, the other segment 6B is loading at loading station 2, and the computer 40 operates LIM's 14 as needed to keep segments 6A, 6B in opposing positions on loop 5. Segments 6A, 6B then reverse roles again as segment 6B approaches unloading stations 4. Under conditions where less than all carts in a full loop are filled with items, this embodiment avoids wasted energy associated with driving empty carts continuously around the circle.
In the embodiment of
It will be understood that the foregoing description is of preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention, and that the invention is not limited to the specific forms shown, but is limited only by the scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.
Bennett, Mark A., Kugle, Stephen T.
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Executed on | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance | Frame | Reel | Doc |
Feb 22 2000 | Siemens ElectroCom, L.P. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / | |||
Jun 12 2000 | KUGLE, STEPHEN T | SIEMENS ELECTROCOM, L P | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 010929 | /0159 | |
Jun 19 2000 | BENNETT, MARK A | SIEMENS ELECTROCOM, L P | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 010929 | /0159 | |
Apr 30 2019 | SIEMENS INDUSTRY, INC | SIEMENS POSTAL, PARCEL & AIRPORT LOGISTICS LLC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 049081 | /0626 | |
May 16 2019 | SIEMENS POSTAL, PARCEL & AIRPORT LOGISTICS LLC | Siemens Logistics LLC | CHANGE OF NAME SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 051588 | /0282 |
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